With the Raleigh arena project $20M over budget, Laurie
Willis of the NEWS & OBSERVER reported that the Hurricanes
"have proposed giving more money for the arena, but have not
divulged how much they are offering" (Raleigh NEWS &
OBSERVER, 6/6)....In Dallas, Holly Cain reports that Bruton
Smith's $3M worth of renovations at his Texas Motor Speedway
may have "put" the track "back in contention for a highly
coveted" second Winston Cup race in '99 (DALLAS MORNING
NEWS, 6/8). But in Charlotte, Jim Utter wrote that the
Winston Cup circuit next year is "likely to include" a 34th
race at the Homestead Motorsports complex in FL, while
another race may be added for the Kansas City, KS, facility
in 2000 (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 6/7).

Irvine, CA, leaders "expressed wariness" Friday at
granting exclusive development rights to an investment group
seeking to build a pro football stadium in the city, and
said that "it could be months before they make a final
decision," according to Shelby Grad of the L.A. TIMES. The
Southern California Sports Group (SCSG), comprised of L.A.
investors including former USC RB Anthony Davis, has said
that it "will raise" $500M for a stadium if Irvine "will
give it sole authority to develop the project and help
recruit an NFL team." Irvine Mayor Christina Shea, on the
SCSG's proposal: "They want exclusivity, and I don't think
the council is ready to do that." SCSG execs could not be
reached for comment, and Grad wrote that it is "unclear"
whether the group would proceed with a stadium plan without
exclusive development rights (L.A. TIMES, 6/6).

New York City Council Speaker Peter Vallone "refused to
drop his call" on Friday for a referendum on any new Yankee
stadium, one day after team Owner George Steinbrenner said
Vallone's actions could led him to relocate his team out of
New York, according to Michael Finnegan of the N.Y. DAILY
NEWS. Vallone said he was "definitely proceeding with" the
stadium referendum, adding that city voters "must be allowed
to decide whether taxpayer money is spent on the nation's
most expensive ballpark at a time when many public schools
are in disrepair." NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani "added to the
extraordinary pressure" on Vallone, "echoing" Steinbrenner's
statements, and saying that the city "must be able to offer
Steinbrenner a Manhattan ballpark" if the team decides to
leave Yankee Stadium (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/8).
NO CHANCE TO WIN VOTE? In N.Y., Clifford Levy wrote an
analysis of Giuliani's opposition to a referendum under the
header, "Sensing A Defeat." He wrote that Giuliani is
looking to avoid a vote as, "stadium naysayers here, as in
similar votes elsewhere, would seem to have the upper hand"
(N.Y. TIMES, 6/6). In N.Y., Mike Lupica wrote that
Steinbrenner uses "vague threats" in talks of a new stadium,
but "never comes out and tells us exactly what he wants"
(N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/7). Also in N.Y., Dave Anderson wrote,
"[E]verybody should know that whenever [Steinbrenner] talks
about taking his team anywhere, he's bluffing" (N.Y. TIMES,
6/7). But a N.Y. POST editorial titled "Steinbrenner Is
Serious," stated that, "Whatever else Steinbrenner may be,
he isn't a loose cannon. ... When he says Jersey, he means
Jersey" (N.Y. POST, 6/6). A N.Y. TIMES editorial stated
that while the "referendum Mr. Vallone desires is unlikely
to enhance public discourse" of a facility, it is his "right
to raise the issue of public financing." The paper
concluded: "The universe of private financing options is a
lot wider than Mr. Steinbrenner and the other lords of
baseball let on" (N.Y. TIMES, 6/6).

MD Stadium Authority Chair John Moag, who was named to
head the sports investment group at Legg Mason Wood Walker
Inc., said that he "will take the steps necessary to avoid
conflicts of interest," according to Jon Morgan of the
Baltimore SUN. Moag said that his investment group "won't
be looking for work" in MD and added, "The kind of stuff I'm
going to be doing here is out of state." However, Morgan
wrote that others "aren't so sure," including MD Common
Cause Exec Dir Kathleen Skullney, who called Moag's new
position "very problematic," and said Moag "has a
responsibility to the state not to wear those two hats."
Moag said that he "will recuse himself from consideration of
business that might overlap with Legg Mason's work," adding
that Legg Mason "won't do business" with the Stadium
Authority or either Baltimore team (Baltimore SUN, 6/7).